


Resolved

by babesrgrs



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, Resolved Sexual Tension, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 07:40:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30035304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babesrgrs/pseuds/babesrgrs
Summary: Look – he knew there was something going on.Betweenthem. He knew Tony was always on his case in good and in bad, he knew they were uncommonly physical at times with one another – especially for two adult men in this day and age – and he knew that he liked Tony’s attention.He didn’t know what he wanted to do with all this knowledge.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 7
Kudos: 121





	Resolved

Steve wasn’t generally speaking very much into glad-handing with the rich and famous who wanted a picture with a superhero, but, alas, needs must. They were invited to the awards dinner by the mayor and they needed to keep a good relationship with the city and its elected officials. And, as Tony had pointed out, the public liked seeing them show a united front, posing for pictures on the red carpet as a team.

They especially liked them play up the team dynamics, Tony saying something outrageous to a reporter and Steve stepping in and playfully reprimanding him before steering him away.

Steve got it and he didn’t usually mind it that much even when he’d rather be doing something else. Often enough, there were moments where it was just like hanging out with his friends, even if in tuxedos and evening gowns.

He would have given a lot to escape the event tonight, though. They’d finished a mission yesterday to a bad note and the team was still feeling that – Tony especially was still feeling that.

It had been uphill ice-skating the whole way into the HYDRA plant, even Natasha losing her humor. Tony had wanted to bring an untested droid-army to play, a plan which Steve had emphatically belayed, not willing to risk the mission or the team with an unknown factor like that in play. 

In the aftermath, with Steve limping from the brutal beating he’d taken, Tony had taken a look at him and scoffed, hurt. Steve spoke Tony well enough to interpret the thought: _this wouldn’t have happened if we’d done it my way._

Steve knew he’d probably made the wrong choice: Tony’s tech usually did work, perfectly, tested or not and it wasn’t like he hadn’t had to make risky bets during missions, before. But though the mission had been exhausting, the odds hadn’t been against them, there hadn’t been a need for desperate attempts. So with Ultron and the cluster-fuck that had ensued from it still in mind, he felt like it was his responsibility to see that nothing like that would happen again. He knew Tony thought Steve didn’t trust him, but it was more that he was trying to protect Tony from the what-if-it-went-wrong.

Tony was brilliant and ahead of Steve in many ways, but one thing Steve knew he was better at was handling failure. He could take Tony’s ire but his guilt would be harder to handle. 

So, even when alcohol had very little impact on him in regular doses, he’d chugged a glass to brace himself for any passive-aggressiveness Tony might dish out to him.

Ten minutes into the red carpet and Steve could hear Tony tell gleefully to a reporter how much he enjoyed working with a team, standing in line, getting ordered around by six-foot-two tall statue of muscle and rules.

”Tony,” Steve said as he approached his teammate running his mouth to a whole platoon of journalists, not quite a warning but getting there.

”Speak of the devil,” Tony said and grinned. He lifted his arm and curled it around Steve’s shoulders. 

It was funny how the more contested their relationship was, the more they touched, a habit they had started during that very first 24-hours they’d met, grabbing at each other underneath the influence of Loki’s scepter.

”I was just telling them how great it’s to work together, a team effort, collaboration. Wouldn’t get to use my skills to the fullest if it was just me alone,” he snarked and Steve knew him well enough that his displeasure was obvious to him, but he hoped the reporters missed it.

”Yeah, I was just thinking how I’ve been blessed with such supportive, easy-going teammates who trust my judgment,” Steve answered, and alright, maybe he wasn’t so above it all, himself. 

Tony got his oh-no-you-didn’t face on, which inspired both relief and dread in Steve. Relief, because it meant Tony wasn’t that pissed off, anymore, liking it when Steve sassed him back, but also dread because it meant Tony wasn’t far from doing something unadvised.

”Such flatterer,” Tony remarked, which was nothing close to what Steve had feared Tony might say, but then Tony slid his hand up from Steve’s left shoulder and cupped his head to pull him closer to Tony.

Surprised and not wanting to cause a scene, Steve went with the motion. With their faces barely a couple of inches apart, Tony pressed his lips to Steve’s cheek. Thing was, the angle was such it was basically the corner of his mouth where the kiss landed, their lips fitting partially together.

Steve could smell Tony’s cologne, feel the heat of his face against his own, the prickle of his mustache. 

It lasted about two seconds too long for completely casual, Tony making sure every camera got it immortalized. When Tony stepped back and let his hand drop back to his shoulder, Steve tried his best to school his expression to normal. Slight incredulity was fine and expected, so he gave Tony a pointed look which in turn amused the reporters if their chuckling was anything to go by.

”How much did you have to drink?” Steve asked, getting a few more laughs.

”Iron Man, are you in trouble?” One of the reporters joked.

Tony gave his best shit-eating grin. ”Only the nice kind of trouble.”

Steve rolled his eyes. This part of the charade was natural to them. ”We’ll be having words.”

”I’m counting on that,” Tony said and winked to their audience.

Soon after, Steve made his excuses and went to find Natasha.

During the award dinner, they were all at the same table, Steve sitting between Nat and Tony. All seemed normal, Tony acting almost like the former aloofness or even the kiss never happened.

Without the press, Tony kept an appropriate distance, but his conversation was still laced with teasing remarks to make light fun of Steve. Steve answered in kind and decided to take the shift in atmosphere as the gift it was.

Tony did get slightly drunk, though, putting down three Scotches in an hour. 

Steve decided to assume it wasn’t because of the fight and just opted to keep an eye on Tony.

Later, after he had made a speech to commemorate a late philanthropist who’d set up a center for veterans, he returned to the table to see Tony was missing.

”Where’d Tony go?” He asked Natasha.

”I’d assume the bar,” she said, nodding towards the back of the dining hall. 

Steve frowned. If the waiters were too slow for Tony, they might have trouble in their hands.

”I’ll go check on him,” he said to Natasha and did just so, rising from his place and doing his best to get past all the people who wanted a word and a handshake between him and the bar.

”I’ll take what he’s having,” he ordered at the bar, gesturing at Tony.

”Company,” Tony observed.

When the bartender poured him the drink he threw it back in one go, grimaced, and ordered a second one.

”Can you even get drunk?” Tony asked. 

The second Scotch Steve just sipped. ”Not really. I’ll get slightly intoxicated if I drink fast enough, but it doesn’t last very long.”

”That’s sad,” Tony said.

Steve chuckled. ”I get by, but yeah. Sometimes.”

They sat in silence for a couple of minutes before Tony straightened up. ”Ugh, I need the bathroom.”

”Do you feel bad?” Steve asked. 

Tony staggered a bit as he took a backward step. He glared at Steve. ”No. I need to piss.”

”Need a hand?”

That double-entendre had Tony give into a laugh. ”I don’t know, I’m sure I’ve managed in a lot worse condition.”

Steve finished his drink. ”Come on, I’ll escort you.”

Tony didn’t, surprisingly, decline the help, and even let Steve put a hand on the small of his back to steer him through the mass of people.

The bathroom, even the men’s, had a bit of a line to it. Tony scrunched up his nose when he saw it and stopped in his tracks. 

”I don’t think so. Let’s try the upper level.”

Steve was pretty certain the upper level was off-limits for the party, but he didn’t object to the change in direction. The two shots had given him, for the time being, a slight buzz, and sneaking off to restricted sections with Tony sounded weirdly appealing.

Following the hallway with the bathrooms, they found a staircase cut off with a rope at the end of it. When Steve had made sure nobody was watching, he jumped over the rope and helped Tony do the same. Tony wasn’t so drunk that he couldn’t have made the stairs alone, but as Steve had already gotten into the habit of guiding him, he gave him an extra push with his hand to smooth the climb.

The upper level seemed to be a gallery of some sort, with pieces whose style Steve couldn’t quite place hanging from the walls. Relatively new, then.

They found a bathroom soon enough, Steve turning on the lights as they got in. Tony made his way to the urinals and Steve stayed back by the sinks, half-sitting against the counter, leaning back on his arms.

”It’s weird having you standing there, listening in,” Tony commented, though he was already going.

Steve rolled his eyes. ”I’d hear you even if I’d stayed outside.”

”Ugh, I’d forgotten. Well, at least you don’t have an x-ray vision.”

”I can guarantee you I wouldn’t be using that skill to take a look at your junk,” Steve said dryly as Tony turned around, hands re-fastening his belt.

Washing his hands, Tony glanced at him sideways, ”It never really made any sense, anyway. The electromagnetic radiation wouldn’t stop at skin. And can you imagine what a cancer risk a skill like that would be?” He asked as he turned to the paper towel dispenser. When he found it empty he looked around the white and sparse room before grabbing the front of Steve’s dress shirt.

He tugged it so the hem got pulled out of Steve’s pants. Steve had good enough reflexes he could have easily blocked Tony’s hands but some mix of disbelief and curiosity stopped him.

As Tony was wiping his hands on his shirt, Steve stared at him with a very unimpressed look but that only increased the self-satisfaction radiating from Tony.

”I can’t go back there like this,” Steve finally said, looking down at his ruined shirt after Tony was done. He straightened up and decided that he wasn’t going to try to tuck the now wet shirt back in.

”So let’s go home.”

That was tempting. He _had_ made his speech, already. 

”Fine. Call the ride,” Steve ordered. He shrugged the tuxedo jacket off and untied the bowtie before taking off the ruined shirt. He put the jacket back on over the undershirt.

Tony had presumably called the car during the 15 seconds he had had his phone in his hands so it wouldn’t probably take much over ten minutes. They were better to leave immediately.

In the hallway, going back, Steve stopped in his tracks. 

”Maybe – this way,” he turned around and pulled Tony with him. ”I’m not going through the party without a shirt on,” he explained.

He was thinking there had to be another way down, a way to bypass the hall. 

Tony went along with this change of plans easily enough, though he did point out that most people wouldn’t mind seeing the extra inches of skin Steve’s tank top revealed.

”Sure,” Steve agreed dryly. ”It’s the people ogling me or not ogling me that’s the problem, not the tabloid articles tomorrow writing about what happened to Captain America instead of the theme of the event.”

”What was the theme, again?”

Steve stopped to look out of a window as he thought the question over. He shrugged. ”How the hell should I know?”

Tony laughed. 

”Anyway,” Steve continued. ”They’d probably speculate where Captain America sneaked off with Iron Man and to do what, seeing that they already have picture evidence of you getting up and personal with me.”

It had started to seem like they weren’t going to come across another staircase. 

The drop to the alley below wasn’t that high. Steve could see a balcony door further on.

”Well, sure,” Tony agreed. ”But it’s not like anybody would believe that – it’s not like they’d believe it themselves. They’d just make the insinuation for the sake of it, to hit their click-bait quota.”

”That’s still away from the event itself. I don’t know willingly feeding the press like that would endear us to the mayor’s office. Can you open this door without the alarm going off?”

”What for? You wanna have a smoke?” Tony asked but was already scanning the electronic lock on the door with his phone.

Steve didn’t answer that but waited until Tony had gotten the door open. He stepped past Tony and onto the balcony. It was maybe 18 feet down and there was a drop-down fire escape ladder. Perfect.

”I’m going first,” Steve informed Tony. ”You’re tipsy, so I can catch you if you fall.”

”What? Oh, Jesus. Really?” Tony grumbled. He came to the balcony as well, though, and closed the door behind himself.

”Alright?”

Tony rolled his eyes. ”Alright, yeah. You go first.”

Smoothly, Steve climbed down the ladder. When he came to the bottom step he kicked the release to drop the lower part of the ladder. 

It was released, all right, but it was too short and poorly made and it dropped all the way to the ground. Steve frowned as he heard Tony curse. Well. It wasn’t that bad. He jumped down and landed without a hitch.

”I’m down,” he called out to Tony. ”Don’t worry, I’ll catch you.”

”This is very unlike you, endangering a teammate!” Tony called back. He was already climbing, though.

Steve felt a prickle of unease and wondered for a moment if the booze hadn’t hit him, after all. While he trusted himself to catch Tony, 100 %, it was dark and he might catch him awkwardly enough to cause some minor injury. It was too late to back down, though, Tony being on the bottom of the ladder. He didn’t jump immediately as Steve had done but instead lowered himself further so that his legs were in the air and hands grabbed the final rung.

”Oh, hell,” was all the warning Steve got before Tony released his hold and dropped – straight to Steve’s arms.

Steve had managed to stop the fall with his arms circled around Tony’s waist. He carefully lowered him the rest of the way to his feet. 

”You alright?” He asked – Tony had groaned with the impact but it had sounded like out of surprise more than anything else.

”Yeah, yeah,” Tony said, still leaning on Steve trying to get his bearings. ”Let’s not do that again.”

Steve snorted. ”Does that mean you’ll keep your hands to yourself, next time?”

Tony narrowed his eyes before he went on to paw at Steve’s chest and sides.

”What are you – ” Steve gasped, surprised with the onslaught, feeling the coldness of Tony’s hands through the thin undershirt. He grabbed Tony’s wrists to stop him. 

”Jeez, you’re warm,” Tony said, not at all apologetic, his hands still against Steve’s abdomen.

”Glad to be of help,” Steve muttered sarcastically. ”First you use my shirt as a towel, now I’m a radiator. Anything else I can do for you?”

Tony got a curious look, his mouth twisted in an amused way like he was wondering whether to say what was on his mind or not. Steve got a bit apprehensive of what Tony might say and he wondered how easily – or not – they might bounce back from the no-doubt line that would be crossed.

Again, telling himself he was saving Tony from himself, he changed the topic. 

”I wouldn’t endanger you,” he said.

”What?” Tony asked, confused. ”You mean the drop? Yeah, I know.” Then: ”Just yourself.”

”What do you mean?”

Tony looked incredulous. ”What do I mean? Wasn’t it you just yesterday who got his both legs fractured when I could’ve prevented that if you’d just let me?”

”Wait – that’s why you were angry?” Steve asked.

Tony frowned. ”Well, yeah.” For a moment it seemed like there was something else he might say but he finished with: ”The car’s probably here, we should go.”

The car _was_ there when they made their way to the front of the house: a limousine planned to fit the whole team if need be. Tony and Steve took their places less than a foot apart.

”Did you inform Natasha that we took off?” Steve asked after a long silence, realizing belatedly that their escape hadn’t perhaps been the most cordial thing to do for the rest of the team.

Tony pulled his phone out again and typed something. He put the phone away.

”Aye, aye, Captain, I did.”

”What did you send her?”

Tony smirked. ”Just that you had a mishap with your clothes.”

”Great,” Steve muttered, though not really bothered other than having to explain to Natasha tomorrow what Tony had meant.

There was a brief silence and Steve was somewhat surprised Tony didn’t reach for the minibar. That was usually a given in a limo with Tony. 

”Cap.”

Steve turned to look at Tony, curious that the man hadn’t just blurted out whatever was on his mind.

”You’re not seeing anybody, are you?”

Okay. Steve wasn’t sure what he thought about where this was going, especially in the back of a car, not certain that the driver would not hear the conversation.

”No. Why?” He replied anyway.

”Just asking,” Tony said, which was obviously a lie. ”I suppose it got a bit handsy on the red carpet, wouldn’t want anybody to get the wrong picture.”

Steve nodded, haltingly. ”I’m sure nobody would, anyway. Like you said, no one would believe it. Not the tabloids who’d want it to be true for the sales alone and definitely not the public or people who know us.”

”Yeah. I did say that.”

Tony didn’t pursue the topic any further in the car, thankfully. 

At the tower, they took the elevator up to the penthouse, Steve not pushing the button to where his apartment was on the level below Tony’s. 

He knew he probably should have. 

In the penthouse, Tony finally seemed to forget his short bout of sobriety that had lasted the car ride and went for the bar. On the way, he took off his tuxedo jacket and threw it on the counter.

Steve took his jacket off as well, remembering only too late that he only had the undershirt beneath, but since Tony had already turned around with two drinks in his hands and seen him, he decided to commit to the state of undress – he didn’t want to look like he was uncomfortable.

He took the offered glass. 

Tony took a sip of his own before putting it down. He looked at Steve. 

”Do you want to hear what I’m thinking?” Tony asked, finally.

Steve drew a breath in.

Look – he knew there was something going on. _Between_ them. He knew Tony was always on his case in good and in bad, he knew they were uncommonly physical at times with one another – especially for two adult men in this day and age – and he knew that he liked Tony’s attention.

He didn’t know what he wanted to do with all this knowledge.

All the ideas and schemas he had about relationships or dating or just whatever didn’t easily apply to him and Tony. It was hard to see them like – like anything else than what they were, already.

He appreciated that Tony gave him the chance to choose to continue ignoring the unsaid between them.

And sure enough, he was tempted to take the offered option of this-talk-never-happened, but, he realized, he was curious what Tony saw for them. He was beginning to think saying the unsaid might be worth it.

”I do.”

Perhaps for a dramatic effect, Tony waited for a beat and then said: ”I think we would have really good sex.”

Steve coughed, having timed his consumption of the Whiskey poorly. While he wasn’t exactly surprised, Tony’s frankness had caught him off guard.

”You think that a lot?”

Tony snorted. ”Now and then,” he said. ”Especially when you keep your hand on my lower back for the better part of the evening.”

Okay, that was fair. Steve felt heat color his cheeks. He could have made an excuse, but what would have been the point? Tony wasn’t an idiot. 

”I didn’t really mean it as a proposition,” he had to point out, though.

”I know,” Tony said. ”But it did mean something, right?”

Steve nodded. ”Yeah. I like touching you,” he explained and immediately made a face at how it sounded out loud. 

Tony found it funny, of course. He looked pleased, as well.

”So,” Tony started. Didn’t continue.

”So?”

”I’m sorry, I just – for a moment there I had one of those out-of-body experiences, you know, looking down at myself wondering is this where my life this far was really leading me? Asking Captain America for a roll in the hay. A roll in the Egyptian cotton?”

Steve noticed that Tony hadn’t yet actually asked.

”Is it?”

”Sorry?”

”Are you asking?”

Tony crossed his arms. ”Look, I know it’s absurd. It’s the kind of thing that bored teenage girls write to each other about but what actually happens only in one of the millions of alternate universes – and let’s be real, even then one of us is probably a woman – and I hope it’s you, the _legs_ , my God, so you know, I don’t actually think it’s going to happen. You just… drive me crazy and for once I thought I’d change the script.”

What Steve parsed from that was that Tony still hadn’t out and loud asked because not only did he assume Steve would say no, but he himself wasn’t sure he wanted a yes.

Somehow the mutual indecisiveness made Steve feel a lot more comfortable and he found that he really didn’t want to leave just yet.

”What if I stay the night,” he suggested. ”We don’t have to do anything – let’s watch a film and I’ll sleep on your couch. It probably wouldn’t be as good as you think, anyway, I’ve no clue about any of it. But let’s not call it a night just yet.”

Tony very visibly went over all of what Steve just said, blinking rapidly. Then: ”And if something was to happen – ?”

Steve felt suddenly easy about it all. ”Then it happens.”

They did watch a film. 

Also, they watched each other, but surreptitiously, sneaking a glance every once in a while, hoping the other wouldn’t notice – or hoping they would.

Catching each other’s eye happened several times, the tension hitching up with every shared gaze.

It was, Steve found, curious that they could so easily cultivate the low-burning interest between them into something more urgent. Maybe it was just the fact that it was spoken out, put into words, that made it into something corporeal. Maybe it only existed right here and right now where they had announced it, like a spell.

But he liked it. He didn’t want it to end. He wasn’t quite ready to make a more concrete move, though. Happy to just – to just have this, especially with Tony with whom they had had their ups and downs and difficulties but when it worked between them it really _really_ worked.

When the end credits rolled Tony stood up and Steve felt a pang of disappointment. He’d hoped maybe another film. It was late but it was easy for him to stay up. He could understand, though, that Tony must have been tired.

”Uh, I can’t sit through another,” Tony said as if reading Steve’s mind, ”but, you know, the bed is pretty big. To sleep.”

Steve got up, as well. ”I could sleep.”

Tony grinned very smugly at how fast Steve had responded. Steve didn’t mind. Then Tony turned around and led the way to the bedroom. 

Steve came to a stop at the end of the bed, waiting to get a cue from Tony on how to go about it or an affirmation that he’d been actually serious.

Tony started on the buttons on his shirt as he went into the ensuite. ”Feel free to make yourself comfortable. Take off what’s rest of your suit – or don’t. What you feel like.”

Feeling silly just standing there alone, Steve sat down on the side of the bed and took off his shoes and socks. His pants were the next logical step – he wasn’t going to sleep in them – but it still seemed a bit presumptuous.

When Tony came back he was wearing sleep pants and a tank top. 

”You sleep in tuxedo pants?” He asked as if any of this was normal.

Steve raised his eyebrows. ”I sleep in the nude.”

That gave Tony a stop. Then: ”Don’t break your habits on my behalf.”

Steve considered that for a brief moment – if only to call Tony’s bluff, but decided it was too much. A compromise between modesty and comfort, he stripped down to his boxer briefs.

The bed linen was very rich cotton as Tony had implied before, the same as Steve’s bed had. Funnily, he had always had the impression Tony slept in sheets made of some sort of futuristic fiber-blend, nano-silk, or something.

Instead, the soft and sturdy cotton felt amazing against his bare skin: his senses had been much more sensitive after the serum, touch as well as his sight, hearing, smell, and taste. He sighed as he got underneath the covers.

”Dear God,” Tony muttered as he got in, too.

Steve turned so he was on his side, leaning on his arm, looking at Tony.

”Is this weird?”

Tony made a face then snorted. ”Compared to what? Aliens dropping down from the sky? Not really. How these things usually go? Yeah, I suppose.”

”And how do they usually go?”

”Well, we’d have made out in the upstairs lavatory we sneaked off to, for one. Or just had sex there, and then gone our merry ways.”

Seeing the hint of distaste in the turn of Steve’s mouth Tony went on to elaborate: ”Or, you know, maybe you’d have asked me out and we’d have figured out how we fit together by spending time on a date.”

”I can’t really imagine us on a date,” Steve stated.

”Is it because it’s us or because I’m a man?”

”Both,” Steve said honestly. ”But to be fair, I don’t really see myself going on dates with women, either. That was a part of the world I left behind. And even then barely.”

Not really in the mood to talk about before-and-after, he continued: ”You don’t wanna date me, do you?”

Tony pretended to think about it. ”Yeah, that’s not what I want.”

Steve felt a hot thrill go through him at the implication. He flopped down on his back and closed his eyes.

”Oh yeah?” He asked.

”Yeah,” Tony replied.

Not yet wanting to give in to the more and more present impulse, Steve took a deep breath and changed the subject.

”You think everybody got back alright?”

”You know Clint can’t resist an open bar even though it’s not like he pays for that here in the Tower.”

Steve chuckled. ”Growing up poor does that to you.”

”I’ve known a lot of old wealthy guys who cannot get it up for anything else than the promise of a free meal.”

”And that’s what being rich does to you,” Steve murmured, smiling.

Unexpectedly, at some point, during a lull in the conversation, they had both fallen asleep. 

Steve didn’t know how long it had been when he woke up, opening his eyes to see the room sparsely lighted. It was most likely very early morning.

He sat up and glanced at Tony. Tony was sprawled on his stomach, on top of the covers, his top having ridden up to reveal his bare lower back.

Steve swallowed. If sleep had interrupted the slow spread of heat inside him from before, it came back now, full force.

Thing was, he had kinda gotten used to it, the crackle of electricity between him and Tony first buried under anger and then distrust. It had been nice to acknowledge it, the evening before, but he hadn’t completely realized how potent it had become.

Well. He sure realized it now.

He couldn’t wake Tony up, though. They hadn’t done anything, they didn’t quite have that kind of a relationship even if they’d flirted about it.

Slowly, carefully, so as not to disturb the sleeping man, he laid back down. He took a deep breath.

The rest of the night was going to be long, he thought as he stared at the ceiling.

”Steve?”

Steve sat up again and turned to look at Tony, who was blinking the sleep away.

”Didn’t mean to wake you up,” Steve said, voice low.

”I don’t know if you did – I,” Tony started but lost his words as he took Steve in, the sheet pooled on his lap. 

Tony sat up. 

Looking at each other, Steve knew that one word, one touch, and there would be no turning back. 

”I’m not tired,” Tony said.

Steve took it as the invite it was and crawled closer on his knees. Tony leaned forward.

Steve whispered: ”Me neither.” Then he met Tony halfway, pressed his mouth against Tony’s. 

It wasn’t too dissimilar to the kiss they shared on the red carpet, not until Tony opened his mouth and coaxed Steve to do the same. 

Their lips moved slowly together as they tentatively mapped how the other responded, how this worked. They didn’t touch with any other part of their bodies, the soft yet insistent drag of their lips the only contact.

With a tender lick against Steve’s upper lip, Tony leaned back lightly and Steve was ready to follow but Tony just changed direction and pressed his lips against Steve’s neck – first. Then he kissed Steve’s right shoulder, his clavicle. Steve sighed, every place Tony touched him left aching more.

As the trail of kisses was leading down, Tony’s hand came up against his shoulder and gave a small nudge.

Steve understood and went down, all the way so he was lying on his back. His mouth was open in a silent gasp by the time Tony reached the edge of his underwear. Yet, he didn’t feel at all disappointed when Tony made his way back up, willing the moment to last as long as possible.

When they kissed again they still weren’t touching by much else than their lips, Tony on his hands and knees above him. Steve slid his hands up Tony’s thighs and slipped them underneath Tony’s shirt. He gently squeezed Tony’s waist before letting his hands find their way a bit lower, thumbs pushing down the waistband of Tony’s sleep pants.

He let the pants be for the moment and instead pushed the shirt up. Tony broke off the kiss for a moment to sit back and peel the top off completely. They locked eyes. 

Steve hadn’t exactly imagined this, before. He’d _appreciated_ Tony’s physical presence, his smart mouth, his well-fitted suits, but he hadn’t thought what having sex with him might be like. Had he, he supposed he might have assumed it would have been accompanied by a running commentary, laughter. 

The unassuming intimacy of the real experience was a revelation.

This time when they came together for a kiss Tony laid on top of Steve, skin to skin. Steve wasn’t sure which one of them shivered due to the contact.

Not with a thought but with only a need Steve let his legs open to get Tony fit between them. He squeezed his thighs around Tony’s hips so that they pressed tightly together where it suddenly mattered the most.

Tony groaned and kissed him deeper. 

With his mouth being devoured Steve had just about the state of mind to put his hands on Tony’s back, caressing the soft skin. As his fingers found where the dip of Tony’s lower back seamed into the swell of his buttocks Steve got an impulse to kiss that same spot before the night was through.

He’d known Tony had a wonderful, enticing body, but to get such concrete evidence of it – he let his hands find purchase lower, pulling Tony even tighter against him by the meat of his ass. 

With his hands already in place, he pushed Tony’s pants down a bit, giving Tony the hint to get them off.

Tony leaned back on his knees and did just so. Steve got up a bit, leaning against his arms to get a better look of Tony completely naked.

He wanted to say something, tell Tony how good he looked, how hot it made Steve to see him like this. Before he had any words formed, Tony rested his right hand on Steve – on his _cock_ , and there went all higher brain functions. 

Steve raised his hips to let Tony know how much he wanted this, wanted _it_ , wanted whatever. Tony took the opportunity to slip Steve’s underwear off, too. 

Looking at Tony looking at him, it made him throb, very literally so. He wasn’t sure how long he could take this slow tease, them not even touching, just looking. 

Maybe Tony saw the urgency for he – he leaned down to kiss Steve on his cock. Gently, he let his lips trace the length of it. When he reached the top, he _licked_ it and gave Steve a glance from underneath his brows. 

Steve gripped Tony between his legs again and maneuvered him up into his embrace. Surely he’d never tire of kissing, Steve thought as their lips met once more, their bodies now flush together. Willing them to be as close as possible, Steve hooked his left leg around Tony. 

There was friction now and heat, sweat making the slow, slow grind they’d started that much slicker.

Tony’s hand found Steve’s left thigh where it was pressing against his hip. Tony’s grip on it was like a catalyst to pick up the rhythm of their bodies. Steve moaned involuntarily against Tony’s mouth, surprised at the wave of pleasure that hit him. 

Tony seemed to understand how close he was, already, for he slid his hand down Steve’s thigh to grab his ass, pressing his blunt nails into the skin while his teeth caught on Steve’s lip.

Hands around his shoulders and back, Steve pulled Tony tight against him, probably too tight, and with a final thrust, came. 

Tony placed gentle kisses against Steve’s lax mouth as he came down from the high. 

When Steve started kissing back, Tony began moving again, now with a single-minded focus. He broke off the kiss and pushed himself upward so his weight was mostly on his arms. 

Steve got the hint and curled his hand around Tony’s cock, wet with Steve’s come and both of their sweat. Tony thrust into his grip, urgently, with his mouth open. 

Steve didn’t know whether to look down or at Tony’s face, but when Tony’s breath started to hitch on every stroke, the latter easily won the competition for the best view.

It wasn’t only the artist in him that came to life seeing the look on Tony’s face as he hit his peak, but the man in him, as well. 

After, Tony dropped down on top of him and pressed his face against Steve’s neck. Sated and content, Steve stroked his back until they drowsed off.

When Steve woke up again, this time in the morning, he was very clearly the little spoon.

Or the big little spoon, he thought as he felt Tony’s breath against his back. He snorted at the thought.

”What’s funny?” Tony murmured against Steve’s skin.

”I was only wondering if I’m not too big to be the little spoon,” Steve replied.

Tony’s arm around him tightened and he pressed his thigh against the back of Steve’s.

Steve swallowed.

”I think this works just fine.”

Steve wondered if Tony had meant it in a wider context than just the position they were in but didn’t ask. He was too comfortable for any serious talk.

When he didn’t say anything, Tony continued: ”So, turns out I was right.”

”About what?”

”About it being good,” Tony said, as self-satisfied as you could imagine.

Steve could, jeez, feel his body react with interest. ”It was – yeah, yeah.”

”Yeah?” Tony teased him.

”Shut up. I hadn’t expected – ” he trailed off, not sure how to put it into words that the tenderness – even now – was something he didn’t know would happen so easily.

”What?” Tony asked, curious.

”It was – ” _almost like we were in love_ , he thought, but finished with just: ”gentle.”

”Well,” Tony started. ”You did kinda imply you don’t have much experience,” he said and dropped a kiss on Steve’s shoulder blade. ”I wasn’t going to – break out the whips and chains. Not that I’m into that kind of thing – to be fair, I don’t really get how’s hurting someone else supposed to be alright just because you get off on it. You’d think that would make it worse. Anyway, it wasn’t just that. I guess we – well. I guess that’s just how we fit together.”

There was a lot to what Tony’d said, so much so it left Steve reeling, heart beating fast. He turned around. There was a hint of embarrassment in the look on Tony’s face, but mostly he was meeting Steve’s gaze head-on.

”We care for each other,” Steve said out loud. Not a question, but a statement. 

Maybe a vow.

Tony nodded, solemnly, then he smiled. ”And _take care_ of each other pretty spectacularly.”

Steve smiled, too, before he kissed Tony.

When Tony was right, he was right.


End file.
